We are a commune of inquiring, skeptical, politically centrist, capitalist, anglophile, traditionalist New England Yankee humans, humanoids, and animals with many interests beyond and above politics. Each of us has had a high-school education (or GED), but all had ADD so didn't pay attention very well, especially the dogs. Each one of us does "try my best to be just like I am," and none of us enjoys working for others, including for Maggie, from whom we receive neither a nickel nor a dime. Freedom from nags, cranks, government, do-gooders, control-freaks and idiots is all that we ask for.

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Saturday, January 5. 2019

I did not plan my workout well this morning. Disappointed myself by lack of planning and just winging it.

It was my second time for my new "mostly-weights" Saturday morning (which will now be my third mostly weights day in a week for a while in an effort to reach a new strength plateau to settle into). I had the list in my pocket, but it wasn't planned or timed properly so I didn't complete it in an hour and did not plan the weights correctly - too light. Sheesh, there were a lot of hulks/hunks there this morning, along with the regulars, the elderly, and the fit gals...

I am not supposed to compare, but those hulks make me feel like the (relative) weeny that I guess I am. Whatever. It's like money: somebody always has more and somebody always has less. Pride is a sin and humility is a gift from God because it is an acknowledgement of the glory of creation. Trouble is, taking pride in humility - sheesh, it's complicated.

My new Saturday plan is meant to be a 3 set/list-item workout, trying to cover a lot of ground before my Sunday cardio "fun" recovery day (runs, high-incline speed walks, and stair machine) because on Monday my genius trainer will try to destroy and humiliate me with everything heavy including pushing my torturous barbell squats. We do 5 sets of everything heavy. Sadist, meet Masochist. My weights trainer plans his clients' time carefully for max pain and misery. And you pay for it.

So now I worked it out. Here's my organized Sat. morning plan thru March:

Saturday workout program January-March – Sets of Three of each line items

A secret, only for guy readers: No matter how much of a dumbass jerk you are, if you keep up a tough fitness routine your spouse or gal will appreciate your bod and forgive some of your deplorable deficiencies and annoying habits when nighttime or playtime comes. It's biology - it's your body that she needs most for her animal happiness. And kindness. Brains and money matter but are secondary to her, assuming she's a good biological gal with wholesome animal instincts and a cheerful, fun-loving heart. Lazy-ass slobs are not what good women desire. OK, sure - it works the other way around, too - guys are suckers for trim, fit, but soft females with mostly cheery dispositions, physical energy, and just the right dose of edginess, naughtiness, and ordinary female neuroticism. They ought to be witty, charmingly entertaining too, but that's special.

Since you've put this out there, I'm going to put in my usual two cents. And I hope I don't come across as one of those "nags, cranks, government, do-gooders, control-freaks and idiots" you want to avoid. I just find this an interesting topic that I have a tiny bit of experience with and like to involve other in discussion.

So, given the information you've provided, my prediction is that at the end of this 3-4 month cycle, you're not going to be appreciably stronger.

I'm going on the assumption that your trainer is having you do five sets each (how many reps?) of the barbell exercises (back squat, deadlift, bench, overhead press). I think you'll find that's too much volume for an athlete of your age (assuming the usual five reps per set). The large amount of cardio work you're doing will also interfere with recovery from your heavy weight day. This lack of recovery time plus the large amount of volume on the weight day will likely lead to failed reps, deloads and increased chance of injury. If the trainer is having you do things like lunges or kettlebell squats instead of the main compound movements, the weight you're lifting will not be enough to build strength. Tire you out, sure, but not create new muscle mass. It would be interesting to see your exact Monday workouts each week: exercises, weight, sets, reps.

BTW, if you're serious about this, you need a logbook, not a sheet of paper stuffed in your pocket, to keep track of your workouts, to plan ahead and also to look back and see what worked and what didn't.

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